Cedar Falls Tigers’ commitment to their roles has created a strong team
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (BVM) — On Jan. 6, the Cedar Falls High School boys basketball team hosted Liberty in a battle between two of the top-ranked teams in Iowa’s 4A class.
“They threw the first punch at us,” Tigers head coach Ryan Schultz said.
At one point early in the game, Liberty even got out to a nine-point lead. However, Cedar Falls didn’t waiver after being out scored 20-16 in the first quarter. The Tigers held Liberty to under 20 points in each of the next three, winning the game 87-63.
“You don’t know until you start to face a little adversity, especially against a quality team like Liberty,” Schultz said. “That was a positive.”
Cedar Falls has been ranked No. 1 in Class 4A for over two weeks now, but the team has been strong long before that. The Tigers won back-to-back state titles in 2018 and 2019. Last season, they made it to the state semifinals before losing to eventual state champion.
The success has led to the Tigers having a target on their back.
“We’re going to get a lot of teams’ best shot,” Schultz said.
It’s something Cedar Falls welcomes and is ready for. But adversity this year has come from more than just an opponent getting on a hot streak. The pandemic limited the Tigers’ offseason to some Zoom meetings and captains practices.
The lack of an offseason meant there was some catching up to do when the season began, even more so for the Tigers as they made some changes to their offensive scheme — starting two big men in the front court for the first time in a while.
The change has led to the Tigers, a team that was more known for their set pieces, to play a more pace and pace style motion offense. It was something the Tigers have always had as part of their offense, but this season has seen it kicked into overdrive.
Through 10 games, Cedar Falls as a team has 182 assists and is shooting 43% from 3-point range. On the defensive side, the Tigers are holding teams to just 44 points per game. They’re moving the ball well and even though there were some growing pains earlier in the season, the offense is clicking.
“What helped our team is we have quite a few seniors,” Schultz said.
Seniors like Landon Wolf, Carter Janssen, Chase Courbat and Joe Knutson have been important in making sure the team stays focused. Their veteran leadership has helped other players understand what it takes to be in the Cedar Falls program.
Trey Cambell, a junior on the team and a varsity starter since he was a sophomore, has also helped make sure everyone is on the same page. He has also, according to Schultz, reached a whole other level over the last five games including a 26-point performance against Liberty.
Other players have also stepped up. Senior Joel Burris, who didn’t go out for basketball as a sophomore, has worked from playing on JV last year to being an important player to come off the bench this year, while 6-foot-7 sophomore Dallas Bear and junior Hunter Jacobson have also stepped up.
However, more than just certain players stepping up or taking on leadership roles, the success of the Tigers this year has been the team’s ability to know their role.
“We do a lot to create roles on the team,” Schultz said.
That doesn’t just pertain to the X’s and O’s out on the court either. In a year when crowds have been almost nonexistent, even professional teams have struggled to create their own energy that they can feed off of. The bench has taken on the job of creating that for their teammates out on the court.
“They’ve really bought into how important that is,” Schultz said.
Giving their teammates some energy to feed off of and interrupt the sometimes monotonous sounds of a ball bouncing and sneakers squeaking on the hardwood is vital in a COVID-19 season.
All of it is in the pursuit of the Tigers’ end goal of making it back to the state championship, and halfway through the season, Cedar Falls is once again on the right path.
“We’re striving to continuously get better and hopefully that allows us to peak at the end of the season,” Schultz said.
